This year's 60-day legislative session may turn out to be one of the most critical in determining the future of Spaceport America.

Bruce Jackson, vice president of trade, controls and export strategy for Virgin Galactic, the only tenant at the spaceport, says the time is now to pass legislation that would protect suppliers and manufacturers of space vehicle parts from being sued in the event of an unforeseen catastrophic failure once VG begins commercial space flights from the sprawling Upham facility.

"We see (the legislation) as necessary for jobs and economic development in New Mexico," he said. "It's really about keeping New Mexico on the same footing with other states."

The legislation being sought is called the Space Flight Informed Consent Act. Under current state law, Jackson said, manufacturers and suppliers for human space flight could be sued by passengers in the event of an accident.

A group called "Save Our Spaceport Coalition" is supporting the Space Flight Informed Consent Act that is being introduced to the Legislature this year as House Bill 49, sponsored by state Rep. Jim White, of Bernalillo, and Senate Bill 63, sponsored by state Sen. Mary Kay Papen, of Las Cruces, and John Arthur Smith, of Deming.

Jackson said both bills are essentially the same because it keeps New Mexico competitive with other states that have bolted ahead of the Land of Enchantment.

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But Virgin Galactic officials have been on record as saying if the Legislature doesn't enact some form of the informed consent law, they will re-evaluate their situation in New Mexico, which could mean a potential move elsewhere.

"We're excited to be here and we're fighting to stay here in New Mexico," Jackson said. "From Virgin's perspective, we love the state and we love the airspace. The weather here is so predictable, generally speaking. Going somewhere else is something we really don't want to do."

Other states, however, have emerged as potential competitors mainly because, Jackson said, they have passed informed consent legislation that New Mexico has failed to do thus far.

"We're very much focused on making it work here," Jackson said.

Because of the state Legislature's failure to enact an informed consent law, Jackson said, companies that once planned to locate their operations at Spaceport America have gone elsewhere, mainly to nearby Texas and Colorado, as well as Virginia and Florida. Jackson said companies cited the informed consent legislation as reasons for bypassing New Mexico.

Jackson also said current tenants at the spaceport -- Virgin Galactic -- may have trouble launching their space flight operations in New Mexico if the Legislature doesn't act.

"We need another anchor tenant (at Spaceport America)," he said. "Think of it like a mall. If a mall only has a Sears, it will be hard for it to survive. We need anchor tenants and everything in between."

He added that he doesn't want to see New Mexico taxpayers left with a $209 million "ghostport."

Jackson said if aerospace companies such as RocketCrafters, SpaceX and XCOR had located to New Mexico instead of other states, "they would have brought millions (of dollars) to the state."

According to an information sheet Jackson provided to the Daily News, "these companies would have generated more than 2,200 direct jobs, nearly $500 million in household spending and more than $62 million in tax revenue for the state." The information is attributed to a report by the Mesilla Valley Economic Development Alliance.

Jackson said other states have passed laws placing New Mexico at a disadvantage.

"Two states -- Texas and Florida -- have a long history of space flight. These states changed their laws to compete with New Mexico. We need this new law to keep our industry here," Jackson said. "This is no longer theoretical. In the past year, two companies have cited New Mexico's liability laws as reasons for locating in other states.

"A lack of (informed consent) legislation has been a negative for New Mexico."

Jackson said it's still not too late for New Mexico to get back into the game.

"Even though we've already missed out on a few companies, there are other companies out there that are forming," he said. "We want to try to capture some of those as best we can."

Jackson said the only people who would be affected by a change in the law are the six passengers who will ride in the vehicle into space.

"All six people have to sign a waiver before they can go on the flight," he said. "We call that the informed consent waiver. In fact, there is a federal law that requires passengers to sign the waiver before they can ride. That does not impact, at all, whether there is state liability legislation in the event of an accident. That is why this legislation is so important."

Contact Michael Johnson at mjohnson@alamogordonews.com. Follow him on Twitter @alamoeditormike